Should the Wii U be Classified as Next Gen?

Pop Conflux's Joseph Rush writes, "I believe the term “next gen” refers to more of an idea than a set period of time that a group of consoles launch. Instead, it should be a moniker for the frontier—the new standard. It’s a phrase that represents the shiny future of photorealistic graphics, lossless sound, and seamless online connectivity.

It's just had some bullshit connotations attached to it by a certain subset of the gaming community. Without wanting to go into too much detail, you know the kind of people I'm on about.

People are too ambiguous when it comes to talking about games; if you mean the PS4 will have a higher clock speed and more modern CPU/GPU architecture than the Wii U, then say so. Don't just say "lol wii u not next gen".

Disclaimer: I'm using 'you' as a generic term. I didn't mean you personally.

Whoa whoa whoa, DC was more powerful than the PS2? I never heard that before but I decided to do some research. I couldn't find any hard facts, just people comparing God of War to Shenmue, which of course isn't fair since GOW was made 5 years after Shenmue. The only thing I could find that sounded legitimate comes from a forum post made by a well respected guy that codes for emulators. According to him the DC was indeed more powerful and posted some screenshots to illustrate his point. Of course, none of this really matters. Everyone knows the PS2 was weaker than the Xbox and GameCube. So it was the fourth weakest and not the third of the generation. In the console war, it still absolutely won.

The misinformationand most importantly the misuse of the term stems from many years of people associating it incorrectly.

Console generations are not defined by their year of release. Like what the article states. They are actually defined by their relation to the previous platform from the same company.

Now that does not mean the original Wii was next gen like the 360 or ps3. In actuality the wii was a generational evolution as opposed to a next gen revolution. Meaning that it was a minor increase in performance but that was NOT the focus of the platform.

Generally the focus of a next gen platform is the technical abilities as compared to the previous units. Ex: NES and SNES or master system and genesis. in both examples, the former was clearly inferior to the later. Same can be said about the PS1 and PS2 and even the xbox and 360.

There is no one really disputing that part. The wii (as it had been classified) was centered around the control mechanics instead of technical abilities. That is why the Wii does not fit into the classification of (then) next gen. It was (then) current gen in relation to the gamecube.

Wii-u represents a significant increase in technical abilities as compared to the previous wii/cube. By virtue of definition it is a next gen system. It has nothing to do with the amount of time that passes between but more specifically how it stacks up to its former self.

It should be noted, we have come to a point where the increase in technical abilities and the end results onscreen are at a slowing pace. No that does not mean the games wont get better but it does mean that the assets to improve these games will not be as demanding or require such radical changes in the hardware to achieve the same result.

For years we have relied on the hardware to display these feats of wonderment. This "next gen" will actually come down more to the creative direction and artistic style of the developers instead of the balls to the wall power we have become accustomed to.

when we have seen so much cg and explosions and lots of special effects it gets a bit overdone. to the point where to 'wow the crowd' means having to go back to the drawing board for something as simple as artistic style and most importantly, story.

Hardware will improve but i feel the biggest improvement needs to be creative imagination.

WiiU is next gen for Nintendo but current gen for consoles. If you think about it there's no arguing that it has a better gpu and more ram but....it doesn't have Bly-ray or a 50+ disc that alone sets it back. It also doesn't have multi-touch on the controller. It isn't more than 1080p which next-gen will mostly be. I could go on but point is that other than having a tad bit more power and a new controller isn't any better or different than current gen and I doubt will even come close to next gen. On another note I was looking at the trailer and uses of the wiiu controller and it honestly doesn't look like it'll be more than a pause menu in your hand and a scanner(zombieU/batman). I feel like it'll be like kinect where your imagination with what can be done runs wild but in the end you realize it's greatly limited. Just my opinion though.

Dude what the hell are your talking about just look at zombie u so many things there doing that can't be done on other consoles from useing the screen as a lens of your sniper too useing the controller to scan rooms to useing it to act like your looking through a window the fact alone the you can turn your tv to another channell while still paying your call of duty or any other game yea that's not next gen lol you haters are so funny I can't believe my favorite hobby gaming has turned to this a bunch of fanboys to blind that they can't see true innovation SMH I know the next Xbox/playstation will most likely beat out Nintendo in the power department but Nintendo will most likely beat them again with there gameplay innovations but it's still to early to tell let's wait to e3 to see what the other 2 have in store for us

@crillvirus81 honestly the only one that seems to be a fanboy is you. I am not bias towards any system after all its video games we're talking about. I get what your saying about the sniping thing that's actually the only thing that I like from the wiiu at e3 but is that feature anything different from but pressing a button and looking at your tv. Are you going to be able to use that in an online match? I wouldn't. consider the fact that unless you don't have your own room why would you need to play on the small screen. Also do you really want to play call of duty with that huge controller mostly no. Most people will play with the pro controller. All in all I was stating that more memory and a different controller doesn't mean it's a tech generation ahead of the Xbox/ps3 because they have things that the wiiu won't, ps store/Xbox live are good examples. N is generation behind in there Internet software and disc format etc.

Get a life the wiiu is 19 times more powerful as stated by a rep ?? i don't believe that myself but in order to have Trine2 DC i say this title because it has used some of the power the wiiu has to create visuals that are not possible on ps3 their words and it runs in 1080p native at 60fps with 2 additional 480p images at 60fps with next gen HD graphics being diplayed across all 3 takes at least 10x the power of ps3 that's my take on it.

Talk about blowing the waters out. Release and "HD" 2D only system. 12-bit, for $50-ish bucks. It has the power for HD style 2D graphics, like NSMBW and perhaps U, but has very limited space for the games.

So.... if I release 10 systems that barely surpass each other in the matter of a year then I would be in the 10th gen right? I better get started so I can be the first person to make a 10th gen system.

By your logic.

PS: I'm not saying the WiiU isn't next gen. Just pointing out the current logic being thrown around.

@bereaver, you're taking what's being said too loosly. Wii u is nintendos next console after a 6/7 year genration of consoles, thus making it next-gen. At least that's what I mean when I say its ninttendos next console. Of course a generation must pass for the next to begin, so releasing a system back to back over a short period of time wouldn't make each successive console next gen. Power does not matter. Time span however is undeniable

Whatever help them guys sleeps at night . No one ever made up some silly rule about a next gen of console needed to be a precise amount of powerful to be qualified as next gen .

And even by those silly imaginary rules , the Wii , however weak it was , was still more powerful than the ps2 , original xbox , and gc , hence part of the same set of next gen machines as the 360 and ps3 .

The Wii U is even more so legitimate by such "ruleset" as stomping both ps3 and 360 powerwise so far .

My PC was doing that in the early part of 2000. Guess PS3 isnt even 7th gen now is it? You kids never have enough common sense to actually think about what you say and how it applies to other platforms out there.

We are talking about full games in 1080p. Not limited download only titles for 10.00.

Oh boy another one of these articles. I thought this was nipped in the bud months ago. People just need to accept it. If your looking for reasons not to get it than your not even paying any attention to the systems benefits.

I think the issue is that people misunderstand/misuse the term and its application.

So I guess what we would need is the true definition of the term as it pertains to this subject of video game consoles. Here in lies the problem, I don't think there is a true definition of the term. Its a very loosely used term with its definition based on the user.

So to your comment, you are %100 correct saying its a Next Generation Nintendo Console. Because thats only encompasses Nintendo and its other offerings.

As to where the console stands in regards to the rest of the industry and the offerings of the other players, that is what is being contested.

I am of the opinion that it is not next gen when it comes to industry "standard" of graphic fidelity/animation/ai. It is of this standard, therefore of this generation.At least from all that I have seen.

I'm going to keep bringing this up. PS2 was very weak compared to the XBOX/Gamecube, but was still considered a current gen system at the time. Back then, nobody contested what was one generation and what wasn't based on hardware.

Dammit. Yes. As Obama said to Romney during the last debate, it's math.

It is more powerful than current consoles, and introduces a new way to play games. Why is making games native 1080p, quadrupling the ram, and adding a new control mechanic not enough for people to call it next gen?

Did these same people say the PS2 wasn't next gen because it was outshined by the Cube/Xbox? Was the Dreamcast not next gen either in 1998?

@mrbojinglesDC was more powerful than PS1 but PS2 was more powerful than it too! how can you demoted the PS2 to last gen last time around when among the 3 - PS2 GC and XBOX, it was released 1st? c'mon get your fact straight!

Wii U is more like DC than the PS2 was. it was released at the last few years of PS1 but why was it not considered next gen back in the day? when talking about last gen, people always talk only about PS2, GC and XBOX but no mention of DC! so which one is it? was the DC 5th gen or 6th? it's simple, really. if the DC was next gen back then, so Wii U is also next gen. end of story

The other is small and looks 2 years younger for his age, very small and is as smart as a 9 year old.

Are those 2 children in a different generation? Im going to say... no

My example is a little off because all the consoles for 8th gen obviously arnt going to release in the same year. The point is that the 2 kids are part of the same generation but you dont treat one as not being a part of that generation because he/she is not preforming as well as other children in the same generation.

It would be a remake of a 6th gen console. PS2.5 is still behind the PS3. Otherwise your example would make the ps3 slim an 8th gen console and the super slim a 9th gen. Just as it would make the xbox 360 slim an 8th gen.

That was cute. Really. You clearly have no understanding of architecture, or you really are ignorant. Lack of infrastructure for producing old hardware actually makes it more expensive to use older less advanced components than current gen components.

Unless you mean simply that the PS3 can play video games, and to that you would be correct.

Can the Wii u produce shader models 4? Of course no like the Xbox and ps3 which they can only produce upto shader model 3 the only advantage th Wii u Have is the. bigger Memory which alow it to produce gfx at higer resolution on tv with better anti-alaiisng....the Tablette stuff can be done on ps3 and even on 360 So PLZ stop playing the expert here

news flash girly, wii u gamepad only has a 24ft radius before it starts to lose signal.. U cant take that tablet out of your home & expect it to work.. Where are u getting this crazy information from? portable wii? i think u mean its a wii in HD

if you wanna talk about specs, then considering what we currently know about the system, yes. it has about 4 times the amount of ever all ram as the ps3/360, and it has a GPGPU, and many are speculating that it's a low-mid range 6000 GPGPU, which could pretty much confirm that it can handle dx11, or at least something equivalent to dx11.

Try its a custom high powered E6*** prob using a HD6770 and it squashes ps3 easy 10x the power to run a 1080p Native image and 2 other 480p images all at 60fps with Next gen graphics on Trine2 DC is amazing and that needs 10x the power at least to do this.

I wouldn't classify it as a next gen console. The new ideas behind it are next gen like the Tablet controller. Simple fact is this thing is rumored to be as powerful as current gen consoles. It a Wii in HD with better graphics. But when Microsoft and Sony release the PS4 and 720 Nintendo will be left behind graphically again with the Wii-U. Like they did with the Wii when the PS3 and 360 came out most of the great titles come out on those two consoles. And if a major title does hit the Wii it lacks in the the graphics department and the game looks last gen. Samething will happen again when PS4 and 720 come out Nintendo will be left behind again. Ill get a Wii-U for the simple fact I like some of the Nitendo franchises

So many of you fanboy nerds are hilarious, stating the same bull about how the Wii U is going to be severly underpowered. Obviously all three of the next gen consoles will be able to output true 1080p 60fps with all kinds of brilliant lighting effects and gazzilions of polygons and particles. So I'm certain it has come to a point were art direction and asthetics will be far more important than technical specs and graphics fidelity. Nintendo has always excelled at those first two not to mention innovative fun gameplay. I'm not so sure it will be worth the year or two + wait for the PS4, 720 just for slightly more powerful hardware. Regardless it's an awesome time to be a gamer unless of course your fanboy that has a grudge against Nintendo and obsesses over specs etc, sucks to be you lol.

We can't judge next genUntil we see the games, will the WiiU pad contribute something really new and impressive? Are the games gonna be bigger and more complex, while having greater presentation than what;s capable on todays consoles ? We have to wait and see.

If Wii is a current gen console, why doesn't it have all the current-gen multiplatform games? You know, from GTA4 and Bioshock to Final Fantasy 13, Borderlands 2 and Darksiders 2? Wii is current-gen, right? So why can't I play all those current-gen games on it?
Why there are only current-gen games on WiiU, like Batman? Doesn't it has to have next gen games?

It doesn't need to have all the multi-platform games to be a current generation console. It simply needs to be released in the same timeframe as the competing consoles.

There is no "current generation standard" by which game consoles have to adhere, rendering your multiplatform game theory completely pointless. Many exclusive Wii games are far superior in terms of fun and review scores to exclusive PS3/360 games - does that mean the PS3/360 are not current generation? Maybe the PS3/360 are actually a generation behind the original Wii in that case? The Wii did motion control from the very start, and that is a significant evolution in video games, so shouldn't it in fact be "next gen" compared to the PS3/360?

You can try and argue that the Wii is "previous generation" because of games/specs/graphics all you want, but remember this - you ARE wrong. Release date is all that matters.

>>It doesn't need to have all the multi-platform games to be a current generation console.

That is OK, only if you don't like to play multiplatform games. Many multiplatform games this gen had been awarded with GotY or The Best in their genre, so why no multiplatform?

I'm not arguing that WiiU is a next-gen in comparsion to Wii.
You said that Wii is current-gen, so I'm asking, why most of _current-gen_ multiplatform doesn't exist on current-gen Wii console. Can you answer the question?

"so I'm asking, why most of _current-gen_ multiplatform doesn't exist on current-gen Wii console. Can you answer the question? "

The creation of Multiplat games are in the hands of the developers, if they wished to sacrifice the resources to porting their games to the Wii that would be their issue. They did bring games like COD. But this went both ways as some wii games got ported over to the HD systems also ( NoMoreHeroes <- love that game)

Since the devs saw the system as a casual hub they put their resources to other use AKA zillions of party games. But Madworld and other unique games came about.

no its part of this generation its 6 years late thats my thought i will wait for ps4 and xbox 720 get released and by that time wii u will already starting to get outdated and i wouldnt be suprised that nintendo will make another console to match ps4 and xbox 720 power wise and grapicaly

...aaaaaaand here we go again.Seriously, aren't you guys tired of having the same exact argument over and over and over?

If I firmly believe the Wii U is indeed a next gen machine, and you firmly believe the opposite, we're not going to change our minds one way or the other. I haven't seen this happen EVER, on this site or anywhere else, regarding the validity of the Wii U as a next gen machine. Heck, I've NEVER seen this argument settled even for the Wii (whether it's worthy of being called current gen or not). And that machine came out six years ago.

Next generation has been skewered in definition somewhat by the rampant fanboyism and internet politics that gaming has come to be surrounded by since the birth of forums and social networks. Next Generation literally means the next generation of consoles. It has nothing to do with whether or not Wii U can run Crysis at 120fps with tessellation and HD textures.

The Wii was next generation at the time because it came after the Gamecube. All next generation means is the next generation of consoles after the ones currently on the market. 3DS and PS Vita have already started the 8th Generation off in fact.

All the talk of 'next gen' is pointless these days because people think 'next gen' = more power, when really it just means a 'time frame'.

We're probably moving closer to the car industry model - where Nintendo equates to the family car with the hybrid engine. Sony the high performance but slightly uncomfortable sports car. And MS is trying to be the crossover sports / family / 4x4 / pick up truck. And each releases when they want irrespective of their competitors.

I just can't wrap my mind around how many PS3 and 360 fanboys insist(ed) on labeling the Wii as last-gen. You'd think those fanboys would be trying to make the Wii seem better than it was not worse. I mean, how does getting whopped in sales... by huge margins... become more palatable to the fanboy if the clear "winner" is an inferior last-generation machine?

Or maybe the fault lies with Nintendo fanboys who for some reason expected Nintendo to suddenly have the strongest hardware in the generation despite not having done so since... what, the SNES? The Famicom? And then getting bitterly disappointed.